What’s Your Vitality Plan?
The following article was written by Kay Van Norman, president of Brilliant Aging and an internationally known writer, keynote speaker and wellness consultant. She directed the Keiser Institute on Aging for 3 years, and currently serves on the International Council on Active Aging and the American Senior Fitness Association boards. She’s written two books, several chapters and scores of journal articles on aging well, and her healthy aging resources won a Best Practices Award from the National Council on Aging. Kay’s credentials are extensive and we’re honored that she has crafted this message to benefit clients and friends of Financial Service Group.
Interested in a workshop dedicated to this topic? Please click here to let us know and we’ll see if we can schedule a Learning Event with Kay Van Norman!
Financial independence and health are two top aging concerns. You’ve probably considered the financial resources you’ll need to last a lifetime, but have you considered what kind of vitality resources you’ll need? I’m not talking about the typical healthy aging advice we can all recite in our sleep – exercise, eat right, don’t smoke, don’t run with scissors. I’m talking about what it takes to move from just intending to age well into taking actions toward aging well.
Extensive healthy aging research outlines proven health strategies; yet it’s nearly impossible to separate the anti-aging, defy aging, and miracle-cure “marketing noise” from proven strategies that support lifelong vitality.
Take physical frailty, for example. There’s a dangerous misconception that fraility is normal with age. Frailty is very common- it’s a leading cause of nursing home admission – and it’s very predictable; but it’s not normal or unavoidable. Research shows that up to 90% of physical decline into frailty is due to lifestyle factors, not age. 90%! So clearly, it’s preventable.
What about you? Will you be as strong and agile five years from now as you are today – how about ten years from now? If yes, what are you doing on a regular basis to ensure that outcome? Are you challenging your muscles with strength training or other activities that require moderate to heavy lifting at least twice a week? If not, then you’re losing strength! The average rate is about 1-1.5%/year after age 30. Do the math! You can easily lose 60% of your strength by age 70.
To help people make a conscious choice – and take action – for healthy aging I’ve created the Vitality Portfolio® approach. It helps you make a plan, identify and balance vitality assets, and make regular deposits into lifelong vitality – just like you do when planning your financial portfolio.
Focusing on three asset groups: 1.Wellness – engaging all 6 dimensions of health, 2.Core – resilience and ageless thinking, and 3.Functional – strength, mobility, and endurance; the Vitality Portfolio® provides a step-by-step strategy to support health and overcome the lifestyle inertia that can anchor you in unhealthy habits.
To learn more visit http://www.kayvannorman.com Follow the Vitality Portfolio® link for a FREE downloadable Vitality Portfolio® Starter Tool-Kit. Other resources include the Vitality Spotlights® 2-minute exercise videos (Montana style), downloadable chair and low-impact aerobics programs, and a variety of healthy aging articles and other tools.
Interested in a workshop dedicated to this topic? Please click here to let us know and we’ll see if we can schedule a Learning Event with Kay Van Norman!
